Lifestyles, Dating and Romance: A Study of Midlife Singles

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What comes to mind today when single men or single women are
mentioned is either people between 20 and 30 navigating the
singles scene, or the widowed elderly, especially women. However,
with increases in life expectancy and divorce during the past
century, the midlife and older single population is rapidly
growing. As a result, the image of singlehood is ripe for change.

This online survey of 3,501 age 40-69 single men and women was
conducted for AARP The Magazine to obtain a snapshot of their
lives, their outlook and well-being, their activities, and their
attitudes and behavior in the arenas of dating and sex.

Among the study's findings:

Singles in their 40s, 50s and 60s say their personal freedom
and independence is what they like most about being single, but
it comes with the price of not having someone to do things with.

The majority date either exclusively or non-exclusively, but
large proportions, especially of older women, take a pass on
dating and sex.

Only 2 percent of women say that sex is acceptable during the
first date, while 20 percent of men think it is.

Women want dates to have someone to talk to or do things
with; men want the sexual dimension built in.

Personality and sense of humor count most for both men and
women, but many men emphasize physical attractiveness and sexual
satisfaction.

Both midlife and older men and women want to date younger
individuals.

The survey was conducted during June 2003 by Knowledge Networks,
using its web-enabled consumer research panel, a randomly
recruited and nationally representative sample of the U.S.
population. A benefit of this methodology is that it affords more
privacy for respondents, compared to a telephone survey, when the
study has sensitive questions. The report was prepared by Xenia
Montenegro, Ph.D. of AARP Knowledge Management. For further
information, contact Dr. Montenegro at 202-434-3538 or Linda
Fisher, Ph.D. at 202-434-6304.

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